Is Airbnb a force for gentrification?

But one of the latest charges leveled against the rapidly expanding company is that it has become one of the major tools for gentrification.

Activists, residents and researchers complain that Airbnb is driving up prices in neighborhoods across the country, displacing longtime residents and turning traditionally diverse, minority neighborhoods into whitewashed enclaves of artisanal bakeries, overpriced dog groomers and locally sourced, vegan butcher shops. And in no place is Airbnb’s gentrifying influence more apparent than in Brooklyn, N.Y.


Most of our data came from a report for Brooklyn Deep (BMC’s investigative reporting arm) by InsideAirbnb’s Murray Cox titled, “Airbnb as a Racial Gentrification Tool” (see the pdf). The report provides an all-encompassing study of Airbnb’s impact on gentrification in Brooklyn.

How can this change?

This is a complex question because there is no one solution. Some suggestions are:

Lobby cities to limit the number of Airbnb hosts.
Change temporary-lodging laws.
Strengthen tenant rights groups.
Stop patronizing white Airbnb hosts, especially in black neighborhoods.